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Firme Times and 785 Showdown showcase custom vehicles with shows in Topeka
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Firme Times and 785 Showdown showcase custom vehicles with shows in Topeka

Joshua Bell’s goal was to give his 14-year-old daughter, Raven Martinez, the car of her dreams.

“I was always looking for the car I wanted to own,” Martinez said, “and then I saw a Lincoln Continental and I thought, ‘I want that to be my car.’”

Bell had spent many hours in his own vehicle, a 1994 Nissan Hardbody 821 pickup. Taking his daughter to car shows allowed them to bond over the customized vehicles.

But life had other plans.

Bell passed away on April 12 leaving behind his wife, Meghan Olson, and children to carry on his legacy.

“We bought it maybe less than a month after he died,” Martinez said, “and that brings me closer to my dad.”

Olson said she wasn’t a car girl until her husband passed away, but has since taken his place as a member of the local car club, Firme Times, which has helped the family get up to speed.

“That was her and her dad’s thing, so now it’s our thing and we’re learning,” Olson said. “I’m excited. They’re good kids.”

Building lowriders and community

TJ Cervantes founded Firme Times in 2013 with his cousin, Nicholas Cervantes, and friend David Cano, building custom lowrider bikes as a tribute to his grandfather.

“I grew up around these types of cars,” Cervantes told The Capital-Journal during the July 20 Fiesta Topeka car show that he helped organize.

Cervantes’ grandfather, Phil Cervantes, was well-known in the Oakland area. He lived near NE Lake Street and Seward Avenue and had come to Topeka to work on the Santa Fe Railroad.

His 1978 Chevy Monte Carlo was a staple in the neighborhood and is now being rebuilt by his grandson.

“I just want the tradition to continue,” TJ Cervantes said.

For his cousin, Nicolás Cervantes, having a club was a way to stay on the right path.

Nicholas’s mother made a deal with him: she would buy parts to make a lowrider bike as long as he stayed out of trouble.

“When I built the bike, I was already on parole,” Nicholas Cervantes said. “I was out. I was already out of gang life. I took out all the negative, all the things that were trying to bring me down, that were keeping me trapped in the system, and brought positivity to me.”

After building his custom 20-inch Schwinn bike through Firme Times, he became a member of Soul Survivors, a car club based in Kansas City, Kansas that focuses on lowrider bikes.

“It’s never over,” he said. “You say you’re going to finish, but you never do. There’s always more to do.”

Bring back the classics

Fiesta Topeka has a long history with lowriders and custom cars featuring prominently at the event.

This year’s show was a reminder of the past, as rows of classic and custom vehicles returned to NE Seward Avenue in Oakland.

“The guys we see around us were kind of our mentors to get to where we are now,” TJ Cervantes said.

One of those legends was Brian Guerrero and his 1982 Chevy Monte Carlo.

Guerrero’s car is the same one he drove as a high school student in Topeka. He slowly built it into a lowrider with hydraulics and custom parts all around.

“I didn’t plan on doing all this back then in the early ’90s, I just got tires for it,” Guerrero said.

At the time, the car scene in Topeka was strong, with shows popping up all over town and cruise nights, which have been a staple along Topeka Boulevard since the 1970s, continuing to draw crowds.

Monica Kerley remembers spending a lot of time with her family at those events.

“I grew up going to the Super Chevy Show, cruise nights, poker runs, all that stuff with the old cars, so it’s always been something I’ve done growing up,” Kerley said.

Kerley was driving his Oldsmobile Cutlass with 24-inch wheels at the Fiesta Topeka show.

“There’s still a lot, but not as much as there used to be,” Kerley said, referring to the number of current shows and events.

In addition to showing off his own vehicle, Guerrero returned to the Fiesta Topeka car show as a judge for TJ Cervantes.

“I’m glad they’re doing it,” Guerrero said. “I always talk to TJ. I tell him I’m going to support him because he’s doing good things. And I’m very proud that he’s getting it back.”

785 Confrontation

As she approaches her 40th birthday, Whitney Penny said creating her own racing show was what she always wanted to do.

“I go to car shows all over Kansas and support them,” Penny said. “I thought maybe I could give back to our community and I hope everyone comes out and supports them.”

Penny and his girlfriend, Maria Vega, started 785 Showdown last year as a summer car show at the California Crossing shopping center, located at SE 29th Street and SE California Avenue in East Topeka.

While Penny was the one who came up with the idea for the car show, Vega came up with the idea of ​​using the event as a way to give back through a back-to-school backpack donation.

“Last year we gave out 100 backpacks,” Vega said. “This year, we gave out more than 200 with school supplies to children in need. That is very gratifying for us.”

More than 100 cars, trucks and motorcycles were on display and trophies were awarded in various categories. A Yeti cooler was raffled off and other items were donated.

“We have a lot of cars in Topeka and I just wanted to get them out there,” Penny said.

Although he is not a member of a car club, he says the important thing is to bring together clubs in the area and anyone with interesting vehicles.

“It’s beautiful. There’s no drama, there’s no fights, there’s no arguments, there’s no shootings, there’s no murders, there’s none of that,” Penny said. “We go out, we have fun, we have a good time, we have a beer or two, everyone’s home.”

Upcoming local shows in the Topeka area

  • Rossville Rumble Car Show, Tall Corn Festival | City of Rossville, 4:00 p.m., August 10.
  • 2nd Annual Homeless Veterans Car & Motorcycle Show | IBEW 226 1620 NW Gage Blvd., 1-5 p.m., Sept. 8.
  • Denny Tryon Memorial Car and Motorcycle Show, Perry Pride Fall Festival | E. Front St., 9 a.m.-4 p.m., Sept. 14.
  • 2024 Lowrider Cultural Festival | Topeka-Shawnee County Public Library, 11 a.m.-3 p.m., Sept. 14.
  • War Memorial Car Show at Gage Park | 10th and Gage, 9 a.m. to noon, Sept. 15.
  • 4th Annual Combat Air Museum Car Show | 10 a.m., Oct. 6
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